Freezer to conventional oven container with matching lid

ABSTRACT

A food storage container manufactured from silicone rubber is disclosed. The container can take the shape of a bowl and lid mounted thereto and is able to withstand a wide temperature range extending from below the freezing point of water to above the boiling point of water. In certain embodiments, the silicone rubber can be stiffened in desirable locations such as the side walls and bottom wall of the base of the container. The base can be so reinforced by fully encapsulating reinforcement members therein. The reinforcement members may be made of thermoset resins such as phenolic and melamine the reinforcement members may also be made of such materials as ceramics, glass, metal, and wood. The base may be alternatively reinforced by forming an external cage made of one of the aforementioned materials and fused to an external skin of the silicone rubber.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure generally relates to food storage containers and,more particularly, relates to food storage containers adapted towithstand a wide temperature range extending from the freezer to aconventional oven.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Food storage containers come in a variety of forms. Very common examplesinclude ceramic, glass bowls, and casserole dishes into which food canbe loaded and closed using a secondary layer such as aluminum foil orplastic wrap. Given the rigid form of such containers, as well astemperature resistance of ceramics, they can easily be used across anextended temperature range including that of a conventional freezer anda conventional oven. However, they can be fairly expensive to purchase,and are susceptible to damage and chipping from relatively minor contactor droppage.

Accordingly, over time, more disposable and durable forms of foodcontainers have been developed. Such containers are typicallymanufactured from a polymeric material such as polypropylene,polyethylene, or polyvinylchloride. All such materials are durable butare not necessarily able to withstand such a temperature range. Theyalso are manufactured from fossil based components, the price of whichis greatly dependent upon the price of petroleum. As the price ofpetroleum escalates so do the cost of such polymers and thus so do thecost of such containers. In addition, environmental interests haverecently dictated that alternative materials be sourced formanufacturing such containers.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

In accordance with one aspect of the disclosure, a food storagecontainer is disclosed which comprises a base and reinforcement members.The base includes a bottom wall from which a side wall upwardly extends.The base and side wall are manufactured from silicone rubber. Thereinforcement members are fully encapsulated in at least one of thebottom wall and side wall.

In accordance with another aspect of the disclosure, a food storagecontainer is disclosed which comprises a base and reinforcement members.The base includes a bottom wall from which a side wall upwardly extends.The base and side wall are manufactured from silicone rubber. Thereinforcement members are provided external to the base and include abottom wall from which a side wall upwardly extends. The reinforcementmembers are manufactured from thermoset resin.

In accordance with another aspect of the disclosure, a food storagecontainer is disclosed comprising a base, reinforcement members, and alid. The base includes a bottom wall from which a side wall upwardlyextends. The base and side wall are manufactured from silicone rubber.The reinforcement members are operatively associated with the base. Thereinforcement members are manufactured from a thermoset resin with thethermoset resin being one of phenolic and melamine. The lid is removablyset upon the base side wall and is manufactured from silicone rubber.

These are other aspects and features of the disclosure will become moreapparent upon reading the following detailed description when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a food storage container constructed inaccordance with the teachings of the disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the container of FIG. 1, but depicted in an openconfiguration with the lid removed;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the container of FIG. 2 taken along line3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of thedisclosure showing an external support;

FIG. 5 is a top view of the container of FIG. 4, but depicted in an openconfiguration with the lid removed; and

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the container of FIG. 5 taken along line6-6 of FIG. 5.

While the present disclosure is susceptible to various modifications andalternative constructions, certain illustrative embodiments thereof havebeen shown in the drawings and will be described below in detail. Itshould be understood, however, that there is no intention to limit thedisclosure to the specific forms disclosed, but on the contrary, theintention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions, andequivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the disclosure asdefined by the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE

Referring now to the drawings and with specific reference to FIG. 1, afood storage container constructed in accordance with the teachings ofthe disclosure is generally referred to by reference numeral 20. Whilethe following detailed description and the accompanying drawings will beset forth in conjunction with a container in the form of a casseroledish and lid, it should be understood that the teachings of thedisclosure are applicable to other forms of food storage containers suchas bags and other dishes including, but not limited to, bowls, plates,pans, and the like.

As shown in combination with FIGS. 2 and 3, the container 20 includes abase 22 to which a lid 24 is removably mounted. Beginning with the base22, as shown best in FIG. 3, it includes an exterior skin 26 in whichreinforcement members 28 are fully encapsulated. By “fullyencapsulated,” it is meant that the reinforcement members are completelycovered by the exterior skin 26 on all sides. The base 22 includes abottom wall 30 from which a side wall 32 upwardly extends. As theexterior skin 26 is preferably manufactured from silicone rubber, thereinforcement members 28 are provided therein to stiffen the base 22.Accordingly, the base 22 is able to retain its shape to thereby definestorage space 34.

With specific reference to FIG. 2, it can be seen that the reinforcementmembers 28 at least in the depicted embodiment is not of a solidcontinuous shape, but rather is formed from a plurality of slats 36.More specifically, the bottom wall of the reinforcement members 28 isformed from a plurality of intersecting slats 36 extending radiallyoutward from a central hub 40. The intersecting slats 36 then extendupwardly at a roughly 90° angle to the bottom wall to form the side wall32. In so doing, openings 42 are provided between the slats 36. Ofcourse the reinforcement members 28 can be formed from a continuouspiece of material but in order to reduce cost and weight, the inventorshave found that such a formation is not necessary.

In order to not only reinforce the base 22, but also maintain theability of the food storage container 20 to withstand a wide temperaturerange, the reinforcement members 28 should be manufactured from amaterial which has both the ability to stiffen the base 22 and withstandsuch a temperature range. The inventors have found that certainthermoset resins are capable of performing both functions, with phenolicand melamine being two suitable examples. Other suitable materialsinclude, but are not limited to, ceramics, glass, metals, and wood. Asused herein, the temperature range across which the food container 20 isadapted to operate extends from a conventional freezer to a conventionaloven. Put another way, the container must be able to withstandtemperatures extending from below the freezing point of water to abovethe boiling point of water, and put yet another way, the temperaturerange should be from at least negative 20° F. to at least positive 450°F.

With respect to the lid 24, as shown best in FIG. 3, it includes abottom plate 44 from which a handle 46 upwardly extends. While notdepicted, the bottom plate 44 may include a groove or the like about itsouter periphery 48 to more securely sit upon or within a groove (notshown) provided about the top edge 50 of the base side wall 32. Othershapes and mating structures can be provided to more effectively sealthe lid 24 to the base 22 if desired.

Like the base 22, the lid 24 is preferably manufactured from siliconerubber as is the base 22. Silicone rubber has the advantages of a broadtemperature performance range, inertness, and reasonably good releasecharacteristics. In addition, if it is desired to provide the lid 24with any stiffening components such as a situation with a relativelylarge diameter lid 24, reinforcement members (not shown) could beencapsulated within the lid 24 as well. Such reinforcement members wouldbe manufactured from thermoset resins such as phenolic and melamine asis the case with the base 22. Other suitable materials include ceramics,glass, metals, and wood.

Referring now to FIGS. 4-6, an alternative embodiment of a containerconstructed in accordance with the teachings of the disclosure isgenerally referred to by reference numeral 120. As shown therein, thecontainer 120 similarly includes a base 122 to which a lid 124 isremovably mounted. However, a difference with respect to the firstembodiment is that reinforcement members 128 are not fully encapsulatedwithin skin 126 but rather are provided external thereto. Such a featuremay be desirable in the event that the container 120 is to betranslucent in that openings 130 are provided between vertical slats138.

With specific reference to the reinforcement members 128, each include abottom wall 131 from which a side wall 132 upwardly extends. Similarly,the skin 126 includes bottom wall 133 from which the side wall 134upwardly extends and defines a storage space 135. The reinforcementmember 128 includes a plurality of intersecting slats 136 as shown inFIG. 5 which continue in a vertical direction to form side wall 132.Intersecting slats 136 extend radially outwardly from a central hub 140.

Similar to the first embodiment, the lid 124 includes a bottom plate 144from which a handle 146 upwardly extends. Also, and again not depicted,the periphery 148 of the bottom plate 144 could be provided with adownwardly depending rib or the like which could sealingly mate with agroove provided within a top edge 150 ofthe side wall 132.

From the foregoing, it can be seen that the teachings of the disclosureset forth a container which is able to withstand a wide temperaturerange extending from below the freezing point of water to above theboiling point of water and which is manufacturable from a material notonly able to withstand those temperatures, but which does so in adurable fashion and by way of non-fossil and non-petroleum based sourcematerials.

1. A food storage container, comprising: a base having a bottom wallfrom which a side wall upwardly extends, the base and side wall beingmanufactured from silicone rubber; and reinforcement members being fullyencapsulated in at least one of the bottom wall and side wall.
 2. Thefood storage container of claim 1, wherein the reinforcement members aremanufactured from a thermoset resin, or ceramic or tapered glass.
 3. Thefood storage container of claim 2, wherein the thermoset resin isphenolic.
 4. The food storage container of claim 2, wherein thethermoset resin is melamine.
 5. The food storage container of claim 1,wherein the reinforcement members are manufactured from one of ceramics,glass, metal, and wood.
 6. The food storage container of claim 1,further including a lid adapted to sit atop the base side wall, the lidbeing manufactured from silicone rubber.
 7. The food storage containerof claim 6, wherein the lid further includes reinforcement members fullyencapsulated in the silicone rubber.
 8. The food storage container ofclaim 7, wherein the reinforcement members are manufactured from athermoset or resin.
 9. The food storage container of claim 8, whereinthe thermoset resin is phenolic.
 10. The food storage container of claim8, wherein the thermoset resin is melamine.
 11. The food storagecontainer of claim 7, wherein the reinforcement members are made of oneof ceramics, glass, metal, and wood.
 12. A food storage container,comprising: a base having a bottom wall from which a side wall upwardlyextends, the base and side wall being manufactured from silicone rubber;and reinforcement members provided external to the base, thereinforcement members including a bottom wall from which a side wallupwardly extends, the reinforcement members being manufactured from athermoset resin.
 13. The food storage container of claim 12, wherein thethermoset resin is phenolic.
 14. The food storage container of claim 12,wherein the thermoset resin is melamine.
 15. The food storage containerof claim 12, wherein the side wall of the reinforcement members areformed from a plurality of vertical slats.
 16. The food storagecontainer of claim 12, wherein the bottom wall of the reinforcementmembers are formed from a plurality of intersecting slats.
 17. The foodstorage container of claim 12, further including a lid adapted to sitatop the base side wall, the lid being manufactured from siliconerubber.
 18. The food storage container of claim 17, wherein the lidfurther includes reinforcement members fully encapsulated in thesilicone rubber.
 19. The food storage container of claim 18, wherein thereinforcement members in the lid are manufactured from a thermosetresin.
 20. The food storage container of claim 19, wherein the thermosetresin is phenolic.
 21. The food storage container of claim 19, whereinthe thermoset resin is melamine.
 22. A food storage container,comprising: a base having a bottom wall from which a side wall upwardlyextends, the base and side wall being manufactured from silicone rubber;reinforcement members being operatively associated with the base, thereinforcement members being manufactured from a thermoset resin, thethermoset resin being one of phenolic and melamine; and a lid removablyset upon the base side wall, the lid being manufactured from siliconerubber.